Voter fraud suspect arrested in Iowa

POLK COUNTY, Iowa — A Des Moines woman has been arrested on suspicion of voting twice this month in the general election, police and court records show.

Terri Lynn Rote, 55, was booked into the Polk County Jail about 3:40 p.m. Thursday on a first-degree election misconduct charge, which is a Class D felony.

Rote, a registered Republican, reportedly cast an early voting ballot at the Polk County Election Office, and another ballot at a county satellite voting location in Des Moines, according to a Des Moines police report.

Rote was one of three voter fraud suspects reported to police Wednesday by the Polk County Auditor's Office.

It's the first time in 12 years that Polk County Auditor Jamie Fitzgerald can remember ever having to report potential voter fraud, he said Thursday morning.

The other two suspects are accused of casting mail-in ballots and also voting in person, according to police reports. As of Friday morning, neither of those suspects had been arrested.

The case is under investigation by Des Moines police.

"I think it shows that our voting system works in Iowa, that we're able to catch it," Fitzgerald said.

"Tensions are running high on both sides" as Election Day approaches, the county auditor said, but the cases of double voting could also have been simple mistakes. "That's not for me to decide," he said.

Rote was held in jail on a $5,000 bond, but she had been released as of Friday afternoon. Her next court appearance was scheduled for Nov. 7, court records show.